I made a couple of new videos about how to use iron woody bands for pole strengthening exercises. Check them out. One is a pole-up to the side of the pole and the other is a push-up on the ground. Let me know what you think, and if you have any requests, leave a comment. Thanks!
Showing posts with label pole strength. Show all posts
Showing posts with label pole strength. Show all posts
Monday, July 14, 2014
Tuesday, March 26, 2013
Pole Moves: Using Twisted Grip
I have seen some heated conversations go down on Facebook about the evils of using a twisted grip. Of course, now that I want to post about them, they are hidden in the dark corners of Facebook's timeline format. I know David C. Owen is an advocate AGAINST the twisted grip.
Read Aerial Amy's take on the twisted grip handspring HERE: "When you put your top wrist in position, twist your chest and hips to face the ceiling, and then lift, you are bearing weight on joints (your shoulders and wrists, primarily) that are not meant to be bearing weight in that position. You need a good deal of shoulder flexibility, and wrist flexibility, to even get ready to go."
Check out some comments left in response to a Studio Veena post about twisted grip handspring:
TG is a great way to get tennis elbow aka lateral epicondylitis. I've have it now for going on 2 months and my practice is now severely limited. Thanks to TG, I have to wear a brace, ice 2x/day, and take anti-inflamatory meds. My orthopedic Dr. says it may take 12 weeks or more to fully heal. BE CAREFUL!! Don't too too many reps and make sure you are WARM first! A fatigued, cold muscle is the recipe for getting hurt.
----
Its the twisting of the arm that is bad, its no where near a neutral position and any time you go outside a neutral body position you risk injury, no matter how strong you are. There are always exceptions to the rules, like if someone is hyper flexible naturally...but that doesn't mean we should all strive to be hyperflexy. I have never heard of a move causing as much trouble on the joints as this one. Be careful if you do perform this one.
Here is a comment from another Studio Veena post about twisted grip and shoulder pain:
Most of it comes down to 3 things: improper form, improper strength or kicking into the move.
And another SV thread:
The twisted grip is a professional level move.
Never kick up into the twisted grip.
Flexibility and stability of the shoulder is needed to perform this move safely. Before working on this move inverts and shoulder mounts should be soiled and very controlled. The body must be highly conditioned before working on these high level moves. Even with all of these suggestions taken into consideration, I have still seen this move injure dancers.....
And another:
This move aggravated a non pole related injury for me personally and I have heard of and gotten emails from other dancers who have injured themselves because of this move. Soooo should anyone chose to try this TG mount, I feel it should be done from an invert and NOT by kicking up into the mount. Its a really unnatural position for the top arm to begin with, and adding the force of a kick and the jerking on the limbs that can result, means you can VERY easily injure yourself. If you have troubles at all with your wrist, elbows or shoulders DON'T try this move!
The twisted grip takes more abdominal strength and will feel more stable than a regular grip for the cartwheel mount and some other grips, because your not relying on arm strength as Chem said, but your "pulling/hanging" from a larger muscle group, the shoulder/upper back/teres major & minor ect.. and using a straight arm to push away from the bottom. The bottom arm can cause pain and trouble too if you tend to be hyperflexible at the elbow.
I know a good number of pole moves are far from ergonomically correct so this is my thought on the TG.... If someone has the strength and flexibility to perform this safely then that's fine for them, but I don't think this is a move that everyone should be doing.
----
I use the twisted grip and I don't mind talking about it. I have experienced some pains as the result of using the twisted grip which have kept me off of the pole for days at a time. Part of this is the physical awkwardness of the position itself, and part of it has been negligence on my own part. But I have also caused myself certain pains by doing other moves like the cartwheel mount. I think any move can be dangerous or harmful for someone whose musculature isn't prepared for it in terms of strength and flexibility, and even the very strong and very flexible can hurt themselves by trying advanced moves without being warmed up adequately first.
Here are some things I like about the twisted grip. I will preface this by saying I only like twisted grip after I am inverted. But once I am inverted, the grip feels more natural and seems less taxing on the wrist and elbow of my top bracket than does the split grip (or cartwheel mount). In addition to this, it offers a lot more control over the aerial movement done in inverted holds. Also, I feel like the twisted grip allows me to hold my torso straighter without the odd sideways-bowing that I have found characteristic of the split grip in inversions. Lastly, I really like that this grip offers the ability to do very slow and controlled lifts and dismounts, instead of leaps and falls.
Now here are some things that I do not like at all about the twisted grip! From the floor, it feels very awkward and can be painful if I am not very precise about my hand and body positioning. Also, pushing off into a slow lift, I have found, puts a lot of strain on the shoulder of my lower bracket (usually left for me) which can leave that shoulder hurting for a couple days (after all, a body is a lot of weight to put there). Further, if I have to shift around too much to get myself inverted in the twisted grip, I find that there is some discomfort for a day or two following behind my right shoulder blade and on the right side of my neck.
I do feel that most of the problems that I have had using the twisted grip could have been mostly alleviated though, if I had been fully warmed up before attempting to do any twisted grip handspring work. Also, whenever I do strength training, I use the Y.T.I. exercise formula that is posted in Veena's video. My friend panda (squishypanda9 who just joined the site today) has been doing that exercise and also Veena's wrist/forearm exercises with me, and I feel much safer when I'm on the pole knowing that I'm using Veena's advice to strengthen and protect some of my very vulnerable muscles and joints. And I've been on enough forced sabbaticals from the pole to realise that I'm just not going to get away with performing demanding pole moves when not adequately warmed up. And if I weren't as stubborn and sometimes dumb as I can be, I would have learnt the first time.
All that said, I learned all of the other grips before I started trying to work with TG. And I fully agree with Veena that this grip should be done from an invert before attempting the handspring. Even though I use the handspring, I still really enjoy going into the twisted grip from a "princess grip" shoulder mount. Once you get your legs on the pole, you can drop your lower bracket, and voila! You're in twisted grip and can butterfly, aysha, or whatever. I like doing inverted bodywave in twisted grip, and when I do it makes everyone at work go crazy!
I am not overly fond of the current TG obsession that's going around right now. It almost looks like its a requirement in order to stay competitive, and I think that's too bad. There are so many beautiful and challenging moves that can be performed on the pole without having to use twisted grip, and most moves that can be done with this grip can be done with other grips. Handspring "lifts" can be done with true grip although this may take more strength and more training. I presently cannot "lift" into anything with that grip, but it has to be possible because its been done in every Chinese pole performance I've ever seen. The straight edge, aysha, and jackknife, can be done with the split, forearm, or elbow grips. I'm sure that if I practiced a little more I could get an inverted bodywave with elbow or forearm grip... and actually after watching this thread, I'm sure I really ought to work on that. I agree with Veena that TG isn't for everyone, and for myself I have found that I can only use the TG handspring in moderation unless I am just in the mood to do some suffering for a day or two to follow. I have a suspicion that the need for moderation in TG may be a universal one, but each poler knows her/his body better than I!
I know I'm light years away from using any kind of grip to lift into any kind of invert, handspring-this or that, cartwheel whatever or whatnot, or anything else. But I am realizing that if I'm not careful, especially at my size, I am putting myself at great risk for injury. I imagine if a twisted grip could give me "more strength," I might have used it. But I want to preserve my body since it's the only one I have and I've already done a pretty good job of beating it up.
Does anyone use a twisted grip? I'd like to hear both sides of why you should or should not use it!
Read Aerial Amy's take on the twisted grip handspring HERE: "When you put your top wrist in position, twist your chest and hips to face the ceiling, and then lift, you are bearing weight on joints (your shoulders and wrists, primarily) that are not meant to be bearing weight in that position. You need a good deal of shoulder flexibility, and wrist flexibility, to even get ready to go."
Check out some comments left in response to a Studio Veena post about twisted grip handspring:
TG is a great way to get tennis elbow aka lateral epicondylitis. I've have it now for going on 2 months and my practice is now severely limited. Thanks to TG, I have to wear a brace, ice 2x/day, and take anti-inflamatory meds. My orthopedic Dr. says it may take 12 weeks or more to fully heal. BE CAREFUL!! Don't too too many reps and make sure you are WARM first! A fatigued, cold muscle is the recipe for getting hurt.
----
Its the twisting of the arm that is bad, its no where near a neutral position and any time you go outside a neutral body position you risk injury, no matter how strong you are. There are always exceptions to the rules, like if someone is hyper flexible naturally...but that doesn't mean we should all strive to be hyperflexy. I have never heard of a move causing as much trouble on the joints as this one. Be careful if you do perform this one.
Here is a comment from another Studio Veena post about twisted grip and shoulder pain:
Most of it comes down to 3 things: improper form, improper strength or kicking into the move.
And another SV thread:
The twisted grip is a professional level move.
Never kick up into the twisted grip.
Flexibility and stability of the shoulder is needed to perform this move safely. Before working on this move inverts and shoulder mounts should be soiled and very controlled. The body must be highly conditioned before working on these high level moves. Even with all of these suggestions taken into consideration, I have still seen this move injure dancers.....
And another:
This move aggravated a non pole related injury for me personally and I have heard of and gotten emails from other dancers who have injured themselves because of this move. Soooo should anyone chose to try this TG mount, I feel it should be done from an invert and NOT by kicking up into the mount. Its a really unnatural position for the top arm to begin with, and adding the force of a kick and the jerking on the limbs that can result, means you can VERY easily injure yourself. If you have troubles at all with your wrist, elbows or shoulders DON'T try this move!
The twisted grip takes more abdominal strength and will feel more stable than a regular grip for the cartwheel mount and some other grips, because your not relying on arm strength as Chem said, but your "pulling/hanging" from a larger muscle group, the shoulder/upper back/teres major & minor ect.. and using a straight arm to push away from the bottom. The bottom arm can cause pain and trouble too if you tend to be hyperflexible at the elbow.
I know a good number of pole moves are far from ergonomically correct so this is my thought on the TG.... If someone has the strength and flexibility to perform this safely then that's fine for them, but I don't think this is a move that everyone should be doing.
----
I use the twisted grip and I don't mind talking about it. I have experienced some pains as the result of using the twisted grip which have kept me off of the pole for days at a time. Part of this is the physical awkwardness of the position itself, and part of it has been negligence on my own part. But I have also caused myself certain pains by doing other moves like the cartwheel mount. I think any move can be dangerous or harmful for someone whose musculature isn't prepared for it in terms of strength and flexibility, and even the very strong and very flexible can hurt themselves by trying advanced moves without being warmed up adequately first.
Here are some things I like about the twisted grip. I will preface this by saying I only like twisted grip after I am inverted. But once I am inverted, the grip feels more natural and seems less taxing on the wrist and elbow of my top bracket than does the split grip (or cartwheel mount). In addition to this, it offers a lot more control over the aerial movement done in inverted holds. Also, I feel like the twisted grip allows me to hold my torso straighter without the odd sideways-bowing that I have found characteristic of the split grip in inversions. Lastly, I really like that this grip offers the ability to do very slow and controlled lifts and dismounts, instead of leaps and falls.
Now here are some things that I do not like at all about the twisted grip! From the floor, it feels very awkward and can be painful if I am not very precise about my hand and body positioning. Also, pushing off into a slow lift, I have found, puts a lot of strain on the shoulder of my lower bracket (usually left for me) which can leave that shoulder hurting for a couple days (after all, a body is a lot of weight to put there). Further, if I have to shift around too much to get myself inverted in the twisted grip, I find that there is some discomfort for a day or two following behind my right shoulder blade and on the right side of my neck.
I do feel that most of the problems that I have had using the twisted grip could have been mostly alleviated though, if I had been fully warmed up before attempting to do any twisted grip handspring work. Also, whenever I do strength training, I use the Y.T.I. exercise formula that is posted in Veena's video. My friend panda (squishypanda9 who just joined the site today) has been doing that exercise and also Veena's wrist/forearm exercises with me, and I feel much safer when I'm on the pole knowing that I'm using Veena's advice to strengthen and protect some of my very vulnerable muscles and joints. And I've been on enough forced sabbaticals from the pole to realise that I'm just not going to get away with performing demanding pole moves when not adequately warmed up. And if I weren't as stubborn and sometimes dumb as I can be, I would have learnt the first time.
All that said, I learned all of the other grips before I started trying to work with TG. And I fully agree with Veena that this grip should be done from an invert before attempting the handspring. Even though I use the handspring, I still really enjoy going into the twisted grip from a "princess grip" shoulder mount. Once you get your legs on the pole, you can drop your lower bracket, and voila! You're in twisted grip and can butterfly, aysha, or whatever. I like doing inverted bodywave in twisted grip, and when I do it makes everyone at work go crazy!
I am not overly fond of the current TG obsession that's going around right now. It almost looks like its a requirement in order to stay competitive, and I think that's too bad. There are so many beautiful and challenging moves that can be performed on the pole without having to use twisted grip, and most moves that can be done with this grip can be done with other grips. Handspring "lifts" can be done with true grip although this may take more strength and more training. I presently cannot "lift" into anything with that grip, but it has to be possible because its been done in every Chinese pole performance I've ever seen. The straight edge, aysha, and jackknife, can be done with the split, forearm, or elbow grips. I'm sure that if I practiced a little more I could get an inverted bodywave with elbow or forearm grip... and actually after watching this thread, I'm sure I really ought to work on that. I agree with Veena that TG isn't for everyone, and for myself I have found that I can only use the TG handspring in moderation unless I am just in the mood to do some suffering for a day or two to follow. I have a suspicion that the need for moderation in TG may be a universal one, but each poler knows her/his body better than I!
*****
I know I'm light years away from using any kind of grip to lift into any kind of invert, handspring-this or that, cartwheel whatever or whatnot, or anything else. But I am realizing that if I'm not careful, especially at my size, I am putting myself at great risk for injury. I imagine if a twisted grip could give me "more strength," I might have used it. But I want to preserve my body since it's the only one I have and I've already done a pretty good job of beating it up.
Does anyone use a twisted grip? I'd like to hear both sides of why you should or should not use it!
Monday, March 25, 2013
Pole Poll: Do you train on both sides?
Last month on Facebook, I posted a pole poll asking how many dancers train on both sides. At Twirly Girls, we generally only learn on our dominant side. Bel's theory is that baseball players don't bat using their non-dominant side, so doing tricks and twirls on our non-dominant side may be setting our bodies up for more injury.
There are many people who do not subscribe to this theory. I have heard many argue that you don't want one strong arm and one itty, bitty weak one. I haven't noticed a huge difference in my bicep size on either arm. But especially for those who compete or perform professionally, having the strength and grace to perform tricks on both sides seems to be very, very important. One person put it to me this way, if you get waaaaay up there on the pole and something bad happens to your dominant side, you want to have the strength to get yourself down safely using your non-dominant side.
Here are some comments left in response to my question (I am posting them anonymously, but if you'd like to claim your comment, please let me know and I will happily credit you).
YES, I am a broken record on this. Always train both sides to protect your body from injury, plus sometimes you need to get into certain moves from something else on your bad side.
...All my students know to as well...Training on one side only leads to muscle imbalances which, in turn, can lead to postural imbalance as well...
Yes. I usually start with my easier side but you should always do both sides for balance of strength and ability. Also aesthetically, you want your muscle tone to be event.
Both, always. That way I build up both sides equally and it improves my over all strength. I am way better on my dominant side, but there are a few moves I actually do better on the weaker side. I teach making my students do both sides also.
I always try to train both sides to maintain each strength, unless it is something complex that is more technique based than strength based, in which case I go "strong" side in order to get it as good as possible.
Always! You never know when you'll need to transition out of something and end up on your non-dominant side.
Yes, my instructors don't enforce it much but I sneak in a little on my own every class and practice session. I occasionally do a whole lower level class on my other side too. I just feel something isn't right when I leave classes with my right upper everything killing me and my left side feeling almost nothing.
Obviously the popular answer is yes. But I am a no. Personally, I put myself int a lot of danger trying to do things on my opposite side. It's a brain communicating to my body thing rather than a "strength" thing. (This does not include basic spins and such. Those I'm cool with being ambi.)
Absolutely! How could ya not? Wouldn't go to the gym and only do free weights on one side...
Yes yes yes! There are some tricks that I still can't muster on both sides, like twisted grip and ayesha. But any move that I teach, I do on both sides. I read that the biggest contributor to back pain and injury among athletes is lopsided muscle development in the torso. Muscles are strong enough to literally pull and twist your spine out of alignment.
MUST!
Balance. PERIOD.
I received many, many responses to my question, but those are some of my favorites. In Sean Michael's class, I have started doing a few things on my non-dominant side. I'm three and a half years into pole dancing, so it feels very awkward. But I am also still barely over beginner-intermediate in my moves, so I haven't advanced to the moves that cause the kind of muscle gain that might make ambidextrous moves more important.
How about you? Do you train both sides? Why or why not?
There are many people who do not subscribe to this theory. I have heard many argue that you don't want one strong arm and one itty, bitty weak one. I haven't noticed a huge difference in my bicep size on either arm. But especially for those who compete or perform professionally, having the strength and grace to perform tricks on both sides seems to be very, very important. One person put it to me this way, if you get waaaaay up there on the pole and something bad happens to your dominant side, you want to have the strength to get yourself down safely using your non-dominant side.
Here are some comments left in response to my question (I am posting them anonymously, but if you'd like to claim your comment, please let me know and I will happily credit you).
YES, I am a broken record on this. Always train both sides to protect your body from injury, plus sometimes you need to get into certain moves from something else on your bad side.
...All my students know to as well...Training on one side only leads to muscle imbalances which, in turn, can lead to postural imbalance as well...
Yes. I usually start with my easier side but you should always do both sides for balance of strength and ability. Also aesthetically, you want your muscle tone to be event.
Both, always. That way I build up both sides equally and it improves my over all strength. I am way better on my dominant side, but there are a few moves I actually do better on the weaker side. I teach making my students do both sides also.
I always try to train both sides to maintain each strength, unless it is something complex that is more technique based than strength based, in which case I go "strong" side in order to get it as good as possible.
Always! You never know when you'll need to transition out of something and end up on your non-dominant side.
Yes, my instructors don't enforce it much but I sneak in a little on my own every class and practice session. I occasionally do a whole lower level class on my other side too. I just feel something isn't right when I leave classes with my right upper everything killing me and my left side feeling almost nothing.
Obviously the popular answer is yes. But I am a no. Personally, I put myself int a lot of danger trying to do things on my opposite side. It's a brain communicating to my body thing rather than a "strength" thing. (This does not include basic spins and such. Those I'm cool with being ambi.)
Absolutely! How could ya not? Wouldn't go to the gym and only do free weights on one side...
Yes yes yes! There are some tricks that I still can't muster on both sides, like twisted grip and ayesha. But any move that I teach, I do on both sides. I read that the biggest contributor to back pain and injury among athletes is lopsided muscle development in the torso. Muscles are strong enough to literally pull and twist your spine out of alignment.
MUST!
Balance. PERIOD.
I received many, many responses to my question, but those are some of my favorites. In Sean Michael's class, I have started doing a few things on my non-dominant side. I'm three and a half years into pole dancing, so it feels very awkward. But I am also still barely over beginner-intermediate in my moves, so I haven't advanced to the moves that cause the kind of muscle gain that might make ambidextrous moves more important.
How about you? Do you train both sides? Why or why not?
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